Chapter 22
It was past noon by the time Buffy and Spike dragged themselves out of bed. They quickly pulled on some clothes and exited the bedroom. They did so mostly stumbling, considering how they couldn’t stop kissing.
As they came out of the hall, Buffy’s stomach growled. She giggled.
“Want me to fix you something, luv?” Spike offered.
She nodded, sweetly.
The stove had a dirty skillet on a burner. By the toaster was an opened bag of bread. Spike held up the skillet. “Told you Dawn would make a mess.”
Buffy sighed. Then she called out, “Dawn, get out here and clean up!”
When no one answered, Buffy began to head into the living room. “Dawn!”
Spike noticed a piece of paper on the counter. He picked it up and examined it. He trailed over to where Buffy stood. “She left a note,” he informed.
“What does it say?” Buffy asked.
“Went out for a stroll. Breath of fresh air and sunshine and all that rot. ”
Buffy frowned. “Ugh, we’re supposed to meet Angel and his gang at the magic shop in a few.”
“Here, luv, I’ll gather up some breakfast, or rather brunch. Then you can tread off ta the shop while I wait here for the bit. We’ll follow later through the sewer system,” he suggested.
She smiled. “Dawn’ll love that,” she said with sarcasm.
“Nah, she’ll find it cool.”
“The sewers? I don’t think so. They’re gross and eww. But she’ll have to deal with it.”
He cooked eggs, bacon, and toast. Buffy gulped it down, hungrily. For a vampire, he made some pretty okay food. If she was honest, he was actually better at it than she was. TV dinners and macaroni and cheese were her limit.
After eating, Buffy gave Spike a quick kiss. “Thanks. I’ll see you in a little bit.”
“Bye, pet.”
Spike watched as she exited through the door. He realized right then how big of a hole his slayer filled. He wasn’t even sure there would be much of his heart left if she got taken away from him again. It was a good thing it wouldn’t have to beat, or he would surely perish if that day ever came. On second thought, maybe is was a curse instead.
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Dawn stared in shock at the hell god. She had never been so scared. Even when she had been tied up on the tower she hadn’t felt this terror.
“All alone I see, Dawnie. Where’s your big sister? She never seems to be around when you need her,” Glory chimed.
The key had existed since the beginning of time, Dawn had lived to adulthood physically, and now she stood there as a teenage girl. She had never been a child, but right then she could have sworn she was. Glory was so powerful and Dawn was . . .
Glory shook her head. “What’s the matter, Sweet Thing? You don’t have to be afraid. I’m not going to cut you this time. I don’t even need the key’s energy. I’m gonna stick around to see the hell that’s coming on earth.”
“S-So, you’re not going to hurt me?” Dawn stammered.
“Oh, no Dawnie! It won’t hurt . . . Long. I’m not even gonna kill you. I’m only taking a little something. Brains are so overrated. They get in the way and cause pain. You won’t ever have to worry about a thing after I’m done with you.”
Dawn’s eyes widened. She couldn’t allow this. She had a duty. The prophecy had to be fulfilled.
“I’m sorry, but I can’t let you go on with that full head of your. You’ll run and ruin my plans. I can’t have you leading your friends and big sis toward utopia.” A huge grin came to Glory’s lips. “And, I’m hungry.”
Taking a step back, Dawn tried to focus her mind. There had to be a way out of this. The powers had given her a substantial supply of knowledge and special abilities for situations such as this. All she had to do was overcome her overwhelming fear.
Dawn closed her eyes, trying to block out images of her blood spilling and opening the portal all those years ago. She let out a tiny whimper.
She felt fingers stroke her cheek. “Shhh, just relax. It’ll only take a minute. Then you can be at peace.”
Tara’s face flashed in Dawn’s memory. The witch had told her later, after getting her mind back, that she had felt so lost after Glory brain-sucked her. She described it as being trapped in a labyrinth where when you thought you had found the way out, there was a dead-end. Dawn didn’t want to live that way. She’d rather be dead. Again.
Taking in a deep breath, Dawn’s eyes shot open. Instead of their normal color, they were silver.
“What the . . .?” Glory began.
Energy filled up inside Dawn. She could feel it begging to escape. She had never actually done this and hoped it would work.
The power was released as a red sports car drove by. It hit Glory, making her fly into the road. The driver tried to swerve, but hit the god anyway.
Dawn didn’t hesitate. She took off in great speed toward home.
Somewhere in England
Clark blinked. “Kill the slayer? Isn’t she supposedly immortal?”
“That is true,” Christina agreed. “But they plan on undoing that.”
“I see. And this ending battle, why would they wish to prevent it?”
The woman smiled. ”Come now, you know the council. They would be useless without demons in this world. But they cannot afford to allow demons to take over the world either. No, they are most successful as things are at the moment.”
Clark took a moment to digest what she was saying. “You are saying that the council wants to kill the slayer, Buffy if you will, to avoid a battle that will either make the land pure good or evil. And they would be doing this for their benefit. Pardon me, but how can you be certain of all this?”
Frustrated, Christina let out a long sigh. “I told you, I work for the powers that be. I’m a missionary sent to carry out the world’s destiny.”
“Um . . . Yes.” He couldn’t stand it anymore and gave into his most awful habit. He removed his glasses to clean.
Somewhere in Las Vegas
David was watching football when the knocking came. He set his beer down on the coffee table and pushed the mute button on the remote. Getting up off the recliner, he headed to the door. He opened it to see Heather and a blond-haired woman.
“Hey, Heth,” he greeted. He glanced at her companion. “Who’s this?”
The girls shared a look. Both seemed completely serious.
“Can we come in?” Heather questioned.
He cracked the door wider. “Sure.”
They came in. The unknown woman was apparently nervous. She had her hands in front of her and was fiddling with her fingers. Heather noticed and grabbed one of her hands. David was surprised, but pushed it aside.
“David, this is Tara,” Heather informed. She gestured to the woman next to her.
Tara raised her free hand. “Hi.”
“Hey, there,” he said. “Nice to meet ya.”
Tara’s raised hand went to her hair. She tucked some strands behind her ear. “Ac- actually, we know each other already.”
His eyes grew larger. “Really? Did we have a class together or something? High school is sort of blur, I’m trying to black it out.”
Tara shook her head. “No, uh . . .”
“We knew each other before in another life,” Heather blurted.
His mouth hung open, not sure how to respond.
“Yeah, I know, hard to take in. But it explains a lot. How else would we know how to kill a vampire?”
In a daze, David went to his chair and collapsed in it. He stared straight ahead without blinking.
“David?” Heather asked.
He remained focused on the TV without moving.
Heather turned to Tara. “Did we break him?”
“I . . . I hope not.” Tara’s expression was worried. “We should have told him more gradually. But you handled it so well and . . .”
“He’ll be find. He just needs time. “ Heather paused. “I hope.”
Suddenly, David stood up. He took his jacket off the coat rack and slipped it on. “I need to take a walk,” he declared. Without a second glance he exited the apartment.
Heather leaned into Tara. “Oh, Tara, I feel awful. Maybe we shouldn’t have told him at all. What does it matter anyway? This is now. Not Sunnydale. I’m Heather now. You’re . . .”
“Tez,” Tara confirmed. “Tez Jones. But I chose to embrace my past. It is part of who I am.”
The door burst open. The girls jumped, releasing each other. David came in, breathless. He took them in with curious eyes.
“Buffy! Oh, God, I remember Buffy!” he exclaimed.
“Xander?” Heather whispered.
His head snapped to meet her. “What is going on?” His voice sounded confused and uncertain.
Heather walked over and hugged him. Hesitating, he held her back.
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Buffy approached the Magic Box and saw Angel’s gang hanging outside the door. Angel jumped out of the car with a blanket over his head.
“Sorry, guys,” she apologized.
Buffy hurried, drawing out her keys. She unlocked the store and allowed Angel to run inside the cool shelter. Cordelia, Gunn, Fred, and Wesley followed.
“I got distracted. Overslept and Dawn ran off somewhere,” she explained, feeling bad for being late.
“Where is Spike and Dawn?” Angel asked.
“Dawn’s still out on her so called walk who knows where. Spike’s waiting for her to get back. They’ll meet up with us later.”
Angel nodded.
“She’s probably either at a store or flirting with some guy. You know teens, always with the fun.”
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Dawn was relieved to see the apartment building come into view. She hadn’t looked back the entire way there.
They were in big trouble. Glory was the only enemy that had beaten them. They had killed her, yes, but she had defeated them by taking away their lives. They had been scoobies, and they weren’t scoobies without Buffy. They had been left with nothing after Glory. A sharp stab of fear ran through Dawn. Now it wasn’t just their group at stake of losing everything, it was the world. Buffy was the key to helping the planet keep what it had and giving back what it had lost.
Buffy can’t die, Dawn assured herself. No, that’s not true, she contradicted herself. Magic could kill her. Magic can kill anyone if you found the right kind. And considering Buffy died a magical death wasn’t a comforting thought.
Dawn passed the elevator and raced up the stairs. Her lungs burned and her breathing was rapid, but she pushed it aside. She made it to their door and threw it open.
“Buffy!” she yelled.
“Nibblet?”
Her eyes shifted to Spike, who was getting up off the sofa. She rushed to his side.
“Spike, where’s Buffy?”
“Not here. She went to the magic shop to meet Peaches and his merry band of men.”
Worry crept on her face. “We have to get to her. Now!”
“Hold on, luv, what is the matter?”
“Glory. She’s back,” Dawn said, frantically.
Spike blinked. “That’s not possible.”
“I don’t know how, but she is. This is the hellmouth, there’s always a way.”
He took her arm. “Come on, we’ll find your sis through the sewers.”
Dawn nodded. She suddenly felt safe. Spike would die before Glory touched Buffy or her.
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Glory walked into the mansion. She glanced down at her designer dress and frowned. “That bitch!” She smoothed her hand over a dirt stain that had appeared from hitting to ground.
A tearing at her gut made her freeze. Her hands formed into fists. “No, not now,” she said.
She let out a moan. Her face contorted, and then there was a man, a vampire actually, wearing the dress glory had been in. He had longish raven hair and dark eyes. He looked wild and mysterious.
Damien glanced down at the red dress. He grimaced. Why couldn’t the hell god put on jeans like normal females of the time? He headed up the stairs to his wardrobe to select a suitable black outfit.
This was getting tiresome. He hated sharing a body with Glory, but there was no way around it. He had summoned her to help him in creating hell on earth. She was the only one that had done away with the slayer and he needed her to do that again. Once that was accomplished, he would send Glory back where she came from, wherever that had been. Hell, probably. Or maybe she hadn’t existed at all and he had brought her back into existence. All he knew was that he had risen her from her downfall, and he would banish again her when after his plan had come to a conclusion. He had found a way to do so too. The only problem was, before that. He didn’t know how to control her while inside him. She kept taking over at the damnedest times.
Damien grinned as he took out a silk button-down shirt. Nevertheless of his frustrations, the slayer would die, and hell would be leashed upon the land.
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Someone said that I better have a good ending or this would have been all for nothing. I agree. I already basically had a good ending, but I started to think it over and came up with details. I think it will be a really cool one. Especially the epilogue I plan on adding. : ) I hope you are all gonna love it. All I have to do is get there. Which won’t be for awhile. I’ll try to write faster for you guys.
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